Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Mimi Matthews to HJ!
Hi Mimi and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, The Muse of Maiden Lane (Belles of London, Book 4)!
Thank you so much for having me!
Please summarize the book for the readers here:
The Muse of Maiden Lane is a sweet, slow-burn Victorian romance featuring a silver-haired equestrienne in need of a husband and an acerbic pre-impressionist artist struggling with adapting to life in a wheelchair. A marriage of convenience might just solve both of their problems.
Please share your favorite line(s) or quote from this book:
“Forget being small and quiet,” Teddy said in a burst of passionate impatience. “I’m asking you to be conspicuous with me!”
Please share a few Fun facts about this book…
o Teddy attended Atelier Gleyre, the same painting studio as impressionist Claude Monet.
o While apart from each other, Teddy and Stella engage in a secret correspondence. They partially fall in love through letters.
o Stella is Teddy’s muse. His desire to paint her in the new style (early Impressionism) is what originally fuels his pursuit. Friendship follows, and love soon after.
o Stella has a close bond with her spirited gray mare, Locket. Riding is one of the ways she exhibits power and control in a life where she, initially, has very little.
What first attracts your Hero to the Heroine and vice versa?
Teddy is first attracted Stella because she’s prematurely gray. That, combined with her unique beauty and poise inspire him to paint her. Stella is attracted to Teddy because he’s unapologetically outspoken and blunt. He doesn’t seem to care about societal rules, or to adhere to them. His irreverent manner both shocks and enthralls her.
Did any scene have you blushing, crying or laughing while writing it? And Why?
I was really moved when writing the scene where Teddy proposes a marriage of convenience to Stella. Here’s a snippet!
She swiped at her cheeks. “I’m being excessively stupid. It’s only that . . . no one has ever defended me before, except for my friends. My brother was forever intimating that any insults were my own fault for inspiring them. He said I was too loud and opinionated—”
Teddy was learning to despise Stella’s sanctimonious brother. That anyone should try to dim her brilliance!
He brought his hands to frame her face, halting her speech. She broke off, meeting his gaze with quivering uncertainty. He heard her inhale an uneven breath. “Be loud,” he told her. “Be opinionated. Be as much yourself as you wish—and then some. Once we’re wed, you and I will answer to no one but each other.”
Readers should read this book….
Anyone who enjoys sweet, slow-burn love stories with characters who struggle against the status quo, and who ultimately break the mold and find true happiness living their own version of a happily ever after should read Stella and Teddy’s story!
What are you currently working on? What other releases do you have in the works?
My next Victorian romance is Rules for Ruin the first book in my new Crinoline Academy series. I’ve been describing it as Great Expectations meets Peaky Blinders. It’s out in May 2025. I’m currently finishing up Book 2 in the series. I can’t wait for everyone to read it!
Thanks for blogging at HJ!
Giveaway: 1 Finished copy of THE MUSE OF MAIDEN LANE by Mimi Matthews (U.S. only, 18+).
To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: I love the Victorian era for the fashion, innovation, and industry, as well as for the advances made by and for women. What is your favorite era in historical romance?
Book Info:
A 2024 BookBub Best Historical Romance!
One of Parade’s Best New Books of November 2024!
One of Amazon’s and Apple’s Best Romance Books of November 2024!
A silver-haired equestrienne and a charismatic artist turn a scandalous bargain into a vibrant portrait of love.
Stella Hobhouse is a brilliant rider, stalwart friend, skilled sketch artist—and completely overlooked. Her outmodish gray hair makes her invisible to London society. Combined with her brother’s pious restrictions and her dwindling inheritance, Stella is on the verge of a lifetime marooned in Derbyshire as a spinster. Unless she does something drastic…like posing for a daring new style of portrait by the only man who’s ever really seen her.
Aspiring painter Edward “Teddy” Hayes knows true beauty when he sees it. He would never ask Stella to risk her reputation as an artist’s model but in the five years since a virulent bout of scarlet fever left him partially paralyzed, Teddy has learned to heed good fortune when he finds it. He’ll do anything to persuade his muse to pose for him, even if he must offer her a marriage of convenience.
After all, though Teddy has yearned to trace Stella’s luminous beauty on canvas since their chance meeting, her heart is what he truly aches to capture….
Book Links: Amazon | B&N | iTunes | kobo | Google |
Meet the Author:
USA Today bestselling author Mimi Matthews writes both historical nonfiction and award-winning Victorian romances. Her novels have received starred reviews in Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, Booklist, Kirkus, and Shelf Awareness, and her articles have been featured on the Victorian Web, the Journal of Victorian Culture, and in syndication at BUST Magazine. In her other life, Mimi is an attorney. She resides in California with her family, which includes an Andalusian dressage horse, a miniature poodle, a Sheltie, and two Siamese cats.
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Nancy Jones
Victorian